Taiwan: Ten Thousand Falun Gong Practitioners Gather at President's Office to Support Lawsuit against Jiang Zemin

Taiwan Falun Gong practitioners will file a lawsuit in a Taiwan High Court on November 17, 2003 accusing Jiang Zemin of committing the crime of genocide. To express support for the lawsuit, about ten thousand Falun Gong practitioners from various places in Taiwan gathered in front of the President's Office on the morning of November 15 and held a Conference to Support Ending the Persecution of Human Beings, Safeguarding Basic Human Rights and the Public Trial of Jiang Zemin. A press conference was also held.

Gathering in front of Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall in the morning	At 8:30 am, walking toward the President's Office
List of signatures collected in Taiwan for safeguarding human rights and ending the persecution	Seven individual plaintiffs
Legislative Committee Member, Lin Cho-Shui of the Democratic Progressive Party	Legislative Committee Member, Sun Guo-Hua of the National Party (right)
Taiwan Legislative Leader, Liao Ben-Yan (right)	Chairman of Taiwan Human Rights Association, Wei Qian-Feng
Director of China Human Rights Association, Wu Huilin

Falun Gong practitioner Lin Hsiao-Kai, who was detained in China recently for 20 days, and six other Taiwan Falun Gong practitioners who were persecuted in China participated in the conference. Members of the "Travelling Around Taiwan by Bicycle" team that was set up for rescuing Lin Hsiao-Kai and for ending human rights violations and letting Falun Gong practitioners return home also participated in the conference. Representatives from each party in the Legislative Committee and representatives of Taiwanese human rights organisations also attended the conference. They gathered in front of the Office of the President to support the seven plaintiffs who will file a lawsuit against Jiang Zemin, Li Lanqing (former Chinese Vice Premier), and Luo Gan, member of the Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party Politburo, who have committed crimes of genocide.

About ten thousand Falun Gong practitioners from at least 18 counties arrived at Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall beginning at 6 am. Many practitioner families went there together. All practitioners wore yellow T-shirts on which the words "Falun Dafa" in Chinese were printed. There was good order on the venue. At the conference site, the cloth bearing the signatures of about 100,000 people to support the activity was posted. Honoured guests who participated in the conference included Legislative Committee Member Lin Cho-Shui of the Democratic Progressive Party, Legislative Committee Member Sun Guo-Hua of the National Party, Taiwan Legislative Leader Liao Ben-Yan, Chairman of Taiwan Human Rights Association Wei Qian-Feng, and Director of China Human Rights Association Wu Huilin.

Since Jiang's regime initiated the persecution against Falun Gong on July 20, 1999, four years have passed and countless cases of torture have occurred in Mainland China. Taiwan Falun Gong practitioners were also affected and were illegally detained, beaten, and interrogated with violence when they went to the mainland for business and visiting relatives. A female Falun Gong practitioner from Taipei said that she and other Falun Gong practitioners were illegally detained in airports because of the Jiang regime's pressuring the Icelandic and Hong Kong governments when they went to Iceland in 2002 and Hong Kong in 2003 to participate in peaceful gatherings. In Taiwan, those affected are not just Falun Gong practitioners; even ordinary Taiwan citizens cannot get permits to apply for Taiwan resident certificates if they have the same names as Falun Gong practitioners.

A Falun Gong practitioner working in a commerce company said, "Since the persecution of Falun Gong in China, Falun Gong practitioners worldwide hold continual peaceful appeals, clarify the truth with various means and expose the Jiang regime's lies. Unfortunately, the persecution has not reduced but escalated. Therefore, we are adopting the lawsuit to bring Jiang to justice and stop the persecution as soon as possible."

A medical doctor named Shen, also a Falun Gong practitioner, said that he had practised Falun Gong for more than five years and he came to participate in the activity to safeguard basic human rights. He said, "Human rights are a universal good. Now communications and transportation are very advanced worldwide. The whole world is like a free village. Under this situation, no country or area with human rights violations and persecution should be allowed. Otherwise, the whole world faces a possible danger."

Doctor Shen said, "No matter how high one's position is, everyone is equal before the law. Whoever commits crimes should be brought to justice."

A freshman from Hualian Donghua University has practised Falun Gong for two years. He said, "A practise benefiting people in both mind and body should not be suppressed in such a way. I have the obligation to support the activity as a Taiwanese citizen and Falun Gong practitioner. Human rights are universal. All people worldwide should stand up to support this activity based on safeguarding human rights."